In Chapters 2 and 3, you get a listing of grounds for firing or laying off a worker. Given the average damage award in a wrongful termination suit is over $500,000, your time preparing is worth it. And when you lay off a worker, you have the legal right to not let that worker return to his or her work area to recover personal belongings. During the termination process, you must act quickly yet tactfully to avoid future problems with the former employee. If you are unsure about how to deal suitably with an problem employee and how to document the problems you're having with this person, you might want to attend a firm workshop or take classes at a nearby college.

If you do, expect a illegal layoff suit with a big jury award. In particular, you can't dismiss a worker because she is pregnant. * Is this particular problem individual able to change? It is useful evidence if the employee later decides to get even with the company, his or her coworkers or the management. If you don't have the power to change the small company's "no tell" policy, how can you still give a former coworker a reference without getting into trouble? If you own a company with strict OSHA laws on employee hygiene, you should enforce them with your workers. Include any impact the worker's lapses have had on the company or department. 7) Finally, all these reasons added together make this a costly, high-risk layoff. Will the business suspend the jobholder, will it dock pay, or will it terminate the employee? He and his attorney-at-law need to convince the jury you terminated him for a bad reason. Likely you'll conduct layoff methods under this added stress.